The public still has negative views of the national economy

The economy is a weak point for Biden within his own party, especially among young Democrats. Just 47% of Democrats under age 45 approve of his handling of the economy.

June 28, 2023

Views of the national economy remain pessimistic with 30% of adults describing it as good. Last month, when President Biden and congressional Republicans were negotiating a plan to raise the country’s debt ceiling, 24% called the national economy good.

Overall, 41% approve of Biden’s job performance, just about the same as last month. Fifty-eight percent disapprove. The economy remains a weak point for the president, with 34% of the public approving of his handling of the economy, and 64% who disapprove.  About 4 in 10 approve of how Biden is dealing with health care and foreign policy.

While 72% of Democrats approve of how Biden is handling of his job overall, just 60% approve of his handling of the economy. Only about 1 in 10 Republicans approve of Biden’s job performance overall or on the economy.

Democrats under age 45 are less likely than older Democrats to approve of the president, both his overall job performance (65% vs 78%) and his handling of the economy (47% vs 70%).

Democrats remain more likely to call the economy good than Republicans. Again, Democrats under 45 are more negative about the economy.  Sixty-eight percent of younger Democrats describe the economy as poor compared with 39% of Democrats age 45 and older.

Thirty-seven percent of the public have a favorable opinion of Vice President Kamala Harris while half of adults have an unfavorable opinion and 12% don’t know enough about her to say. Democrats are much more positive about the Vice President than Republicans.

The nationwide poll was conducted June 22-26, 2023 using the AmeriSpeak® Panel, the probability-based panel of NORC at the University of Chicago. Online and telephone interviews using landlines and cell phones were conducted with 1,220 adults. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3.9 percentage points.

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